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Avionics compact processor

A state off the art 16 bit compact computer for the EUROSTAR 3000 communication spacecraft

Developed for the EUROSTAR 3000 communication platform of Airbus Defence and Space, the new generation compact Spacecraft Computer Unit (SCU) is the host of the Spacecraft Central Software, controlling all on-board automated tasks.

It provides communication interfaces for Telemetry and Command with the Ground Control Center and drives the on-board data bus. Its design life duration is 15 years in geostationary orbit.

Features / technical details

The SCU implements the well known MIL-STD-1750A computer instruction set, the popular MIL STD-1553B data bus as controller for data handling management and all current Command & Telemetry data protocols. It manages:

ground-spacecraft TM/TC, (Intelsat and ESA protocols)

MIL- STD-1553B system bus data handling,

analog and discrete acquisitions,

high level discrete commands.

In current communication spacecraft, a pair of SCU in redundancy provides a very high level of availability of services.

Indeed, in each SCU, a Monitoring and Reconfiguration Electronics (MRE), independent of the rest of the unit, monitors health signals from satellite and SCU. In case of failure detection, it drives the reconfiguration of the satellite equipments and restore the nominal operation within a short delay.

The SCU features a large flexibility in functional configuration after box manufacturing. The mission software code is stored in a PROM plug connected on a skin connector of the processor board. Several command and telemetry parameters are largely configurable by mean of straps and of another dedicated configuration PROM plug connector.